March 4, 2008 - According to a Reuters news report, fine papermaker Sappi said that it needs to urgently fix its European business, but its North American operations had steadily improved.

"Our most critical requirement is to fix our European business," Sappi said in a statement.

"The position has not improved and prices have edged up off the bottom in some markets; pressure remains on our sales force to increase prices further."

Sappi's North American business had shown steady improvement, and it expected to see further improvements "but are conscious of the warnings from economists about a possible slow down in the US economy".

The company also said its South African business was unfavourably impacted by the power disruptions earlier this quarter.